Karakkam Movie Review: The aggressive pounding of the background sound within the cemetery story beats tells it all on Karakkam. Each scene is begging to be noticed, but just about nothing actually sticks with the audience. This horror comedy comes with a premise that is actually very promising, a dancer, a man who plays the riddle of the night, and a night of murders and supernatural mayhem. Rather than thrills or fear, the film slowly meanders through one disorganized sequence to the next with exhausting confidence. Actor Sreenath Bhasi finds himself in another familiar role (as a character in Kochi slang), while the ensemble’s characters don’t really come off as written beyond the surface level quirks and irritations. Not even the horror aspects provide any tension and the comedy is awkwardly awkward. At the end of the movie, when it’s teasing a possible sequel, I am still waiting for the first movie to be engaging.
Unfortunately, however, an interesting setup isn’t enough when a screenplay pokes around in circles without a bit of tension, excitement or emotional involvement. From the first half, I was so much “bored” to turn my head. The film’s plot is very disjointed and really boring, so I started to question myself, what is the point of this film? The scenes lack atmosphere and suspense, and instead drag from one noisy moment to the next. When the time came for the interval I was certainly tired. I seriously considered not going to the second half, in fact. I hadn’t even got to my seat because I paid for it, so I didn’t want to waste the money. Fortunately, the latter parts at least try to bring in some kind of story continuity, so that this film is a little more entertaining than the first half, despite the bewildering chaos.
There’s not a lack of logic with Karakkam. I do not give a crap about realism in horror comedy. I do expect, though, some sense of fear or fun. Unfortunately the film fails to deliver either. The horrific scenes are never creepy and the funny scenes are less amusing than a smile. Lots of scenes are scripted without rhythm or timing, resulting in unimaginative and awkward humour. There are also a few dead characters around, but the reason for the murders is very silly and unmotivated and so it deflates the mystery element entirely. But the climax also follows the well-established pattern of the modern movie that ends with rumblings of a sequel, as if every movie these days has to include franchise baiting out of necessity, regardless of the audience’s wants or needs.
The actor Sreenath Bhasi, like everyone else, is portrayed as an individual who talks and acts in a familiar Kochi slang. It’s a safe, tailor-fitted part for him, with virtually no demands on him as an actor. I’ve seen him add energy and unpredictability to better written films, but here, he seems like he’s in a rut. The pity is, that’s a thankless role for Femina George who, in many ways, viewers still remember from Minnal Murali, and her role is largely about showing some anger for the entire film. Her character is flat, shallow, and lacks depth and emotional dimension. I actually wanted to know why she wasn’t in the major discussions lately as she is a very good actress but after watching Karakkam, I realized it is because the writing has provided her nothing substantial to act.
For me, Praveen TJ was relatively good in the cast as his acting did not seem as exaggerated as the others. He remained somewhat sincere, even when the surroundings around him were loud or annoying. But on the contrary side, Abhiram Radhakrishnan finds himself in a very irritating role and soon becomes a character to be hated. Sidharth Bharathan, Midhutty, Shaun Romy, Bijukuttan and others perform on the film which only complements the film’s exhaustiveness. Even Manikandan R. Achari, who can do more interesting things as an actor, is caught up in a poorly thought-out part.
The film has its own problems as well. The atmospheric aspects of the film are not very strong; however, Bablu Aju’s cinematography does achieve some good visual textures from the cemetery scenes. Nidhin Raj’s direction is disjointed, with scenes being longer than they need to be. But Sam CS’s background score is another distraction, as the song score is loud for much of the film. The sounds do not play with tension, but rather seem to propel the audience out the door.
In a strange way, some of the animated moments during the film were more effective for me than a few with the real cast. At least those moments were kind of lacking the visual energy that the live action had. In addition, the movie is devoid of any emotional resonance. I didn’t pay any attention to characters, their fate or their relationships. There is no one role that feels like it’s written and well as it is emotionally. Unintentionally funny is the outcome of even the so called dance ghost team which was perhaps supposed to be frightening or entertaining.
So I found myself becoming more and more exhausted at Karakkam, a horror comedy that doesn’t even provide me with fear, laughter, excitement, or emotional investment. Like the film’s title implies, it does not have much of a plot; it kind of just rolls through and through, and although it’s only 1:45 long, it does feel like much longer. Though some viewers might still want to try it in theaters, it’s a 16+ film, and there’s very little here to recommend.
Rating: 1.5/5
